Tray for making ice cubes of various designs and shapes



May 2, 195@ B. H. E BRocKE 2,505,947

TRAY FOR MAKI ICE ,CUBES OF VARIOUS DESIGNS AND SHAPES Filed May 1,;1948

INVENTOR.

BM 12,06 Bmrlf Patented May 2, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TBAY FOBrMAKING ICE CUBES OF VARIOUS DESIGNS AND SHAPES Ben H. De Brooke, Jackson Heights, N. Y. Application May 1, 1948,S'erial No. 24,495 1 Claim. (01. (in-108.5),

The; present invention relates to improvements ind'cecubetrays which are adapted to be inserted into the freezing compartments of mechanical refrigerators, although the principle of my invention can be utilized. also in connection with the making. ofice cubes by any other freezing devices. The hitherto. known ice cubes were. primarily square in vertical as well as in horizontal cross-section and of no particularly pleasing appearance.

Therefore, one object of the present invention is the provision of trays for making ice cubes of various designs and shapes which are ornamental or which constitute symbols that fit various occasions, such as birthdays, engagement celebrations, weddings, sporting events, or which may be formed as trade-mark symbols for advertising purposes or the like.

The hitherto known ice cube trays have been made of metal or other unbendable material, and for removing the ice cubes from a tray it was necessary to apply heat, usually in the form of hot water, to the tray in order to cause a partial melting of the tubes, so that they no longer stick firmly to the tray. This procedure of removing the ice cubes from a tray is bothersome and involves a waste of ice. Therefore another object of the present invention is the provision of trays for making ice cubes of various designs and shapes, which are made of bendable material and whose molding cavities are tapered, so that upon bending or twisting the tray the ice cubes will fall out of the tray without exerting any effort and without the necessity of applying heat to the tray.

A further object of the present invention is the provision of trays for making ice cubes of various designs and shapes whose mold cavities can be filled with tinted water or with any other suitable liquids of various colors, in order to obtain ice cubes of various designs and shapes as well as of various colors.

Still a further object of the present invention is the provision of trays for making ice cubes of various designs and shapes which are of very simple construction and can be made by one single mechanical working process, so that they can be manufactured and sold at a very reasonable price, but which are unbreakable to all intents and purposes, sturdy, durable, light in weight, handy in use, and well adapted to withstand the rough usage to which devices of this type frequently are subjected.

With the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds,

2. the invention consists of certain novel details of construction and combinations ofparts herein-.- after more fully described and pointed out in the claim, it being understood that changes may, be made in the construction and arrangement of parts Without departing from, the spirit of-- the invention as claimed.

In the accompanying drawings the preferred forms of the invention have beenshownn In said drawings:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a preferred. embodiment of my invention;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation, fractionally shown in section On the line 22 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a side view showing the device as it appears while it is being emptied.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

In the drawing the numeral I denotes a plate of substantial thickness, which is made of bendable plastic material, or of rubber, or of any other suitable resilient or pliable material. Reduced handle portions 2 preferably are extended from opposite ends of the plate I, and deep molding cavities of various shapes and designs are extended into the plate I from its upper side. The side walls 4 of the cavities taper toward their bottoms 3 as shown in Fig. 2. The cavities are filled with water 5, which may be tinted to obtain colored ice cubes, and then the tray is inserted into a freezing compartment of a gas or electrical refrigerator in the same manner as an ordinary ice cube tray. When the contents 5 of the cavities is frozen, the plate I is removed from. the refrigerator, and the ice cubes 5 can be removed therefrom simply and easily by bending the inverted plate I as shown in Fig. 3, thereby the ice cubes 5 falling out of the cavities, or by twisting the plate I.

If the molding cavities in the plate I are filled with liquids of different colors, as is indicated in Fig. 1, the ice cubes 5 will be of different colors as well as of different shapes and designs.

My new and improved trays for making ice cubes of various designs and shapes can be made of any suitable dimensions, so that they fit into the standard freezing compartment of refrigerators. Preferably they are about ten inches long (without handles), four and one quarter inches wide, and the depth of the molding cavities is one and one half inches.

While in the instance shown the ice cubes made with this device have various forms adapted for cocktail parties and the like, the cavities can be 3 shaped differently; for instance they can be shaped so as to obtain Card symbols for card games, or

Animalsfish, birds, etc., for children's parties, or

Initialed ice cubes for hotels, bars, and restaurants, and homes, etc., or

Numbers as 1-23-4, etc., for personal use, or

Holiday decorative ice cubes such as Santa Claus, Easter bunny rabbit, Christmas trees, Christmas bells, Easter eggs, turkeys, etc., or snow flake ice cubes, or

Star ice cubes, or

Flowers ice cubes, or

Wedding and birthday ice cubes, or

Leaves ice cubes, and the like.

Since certain changes may be made in the above article and different embodiments of the invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the following claim is intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described, and all statements of the scope of the invention which as a matter of language might be said to fall therebetween.

Having thus fully described my said invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

A tray for making ice cubes of various designs and shapes comprising a longitudinal flat plate of substantial thickness and being made of flexible plastic material, reduced handle portions being provided at opposite ends of said plate and the upper sides of said handle portions being flush with the upper side of the rest of the plate, and deep cavities of various shapes and designs extending into said plate from its upper side having upwardly diverging side walls.

BEN H. DE BROCKE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date Re. 20,371 Leyner May 18, 193'! D. 107,317 Murguiondo Dec. 7, 1937 1,907,502 Chilton May 9, 1933 1,964,431 Geyer June 26, 1934 2,146,236 Stamp Feb. 7, 1939 2,433,210 Gits Dec; 23, 1947 

